And to the human female who once went by the name of Jharmeen Jhin'Darr, the sound was a very portent of doom...

Ask not toward whom the Beast snarls. It snarls at thee.

...for she suddenly found herself struggling, floundering, completely at a loss. The very interstices of space and time formed into an intricate carpet which, with one quick and savage jerk, had been yanked out from beneath her feet.

A Dark One with the power of the All... the power given to her, the power she relied entirely too much upon.... True, she had the Claw with which to act aggressively, bypassing the natural set of checks and balances a user must maintain...

But this Dark One had the capability of channeling, muffling it, controlling the one who controlled the All.

Stalemate... she suddenly so desperately hoped.

It could not be checkmate, she would not allow that, that would be unthinkable, intolerable....

She rose abruptly to her feet, marvelling inwardly at how quickly she was leaning toward accepting the words this Sith was speaking as truth. For well she remembered that flash of red glaring from the body of the human his spirit had once inhabited.

Indeed, the Dark One of which this man speaks could very well be none other than himself. Where else to best hide but beneath the very nose of your enemies???

Words are empty when merely spoken, after all.

She stood there, her eyes widening a fraction, and stared down at the little party. A sudden snap of her fingers, and her warriors ringed the foursome, spears at their throats, threatening.

"Kill them," she ordered, and fell silent, her eyes all the while remaining pinned into Phalomir's green ones.

[ 09-20-2003 11:56 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Graysith ]

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The spears which were pointed at the group all instantly melted into dust. The warriors which held them in turn were stuck back several feet as if swept by an unseen hand.

Phalomir stood and held up a hand.

“My lady,” he called out quickly, spinning to face each of the advancing warriors who sped to take the place of those who were now struggling to regain their feet. “What folly do you call forth? I bring you news and an offer of assistance, you respond with violence?”

He turned to face her alone.

“I am the son of a sorcerer, a Dark Lord nonetheless. I have use of Sith magick, my lady, and know also that the power of the Eye resides within me, even though the Eye itself does not. What I speak is the truth. My loyalty to the race is unyielding.”

He dropped his hand.

“Perhaps it was too soon to be speaking with the Dark Lady. Should I have asked for Graysith? Or perhaps Jharmeen? Which of you would be more receptive?”

[ 09-20-2003 11:01 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Phalomir ]

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"You lie," she said simply, remembering all too clearly the strange words this one had once spoken to her in the darkened corridors of the temple. Words of always having known her, having loved her....

What trickery that!

She lifted her chin higher, trembling in an admixture of anger and fear and dismay, once more recalling the flaming bolt striking her into unconsciousness, a bolt she felt with every inch of her being to have been initiated by this one, this clever ruse, this son of a sorcerer, Phalomir.

"I do not believe the words you speak. You come once again under pretense of friendship, in warning to me, to the Sith... yet you harbor within you a darkness that belies your words. Both of you do! For you both have proclaimed friendship, yet neither of you offer the trust to act as foundation to that offerring."

Now she turned blazing eyes upon Shayla, recalling a time she once ordered her to perform a similar act, remembering how she had responded.

A sudden coalescence of memory and reality: how well she remembered the time she had dropped to her knees before Wicked, offering her very death, recalled his reaction, the triggering which ensued....

She raised the hand and aimed the Claw squarely between Phalomir's green eyes.

"If this be the last order I give, if in the giving this is the last action I perform, then so be it!"

From the shadows, a twin movement caught her peripheral vision.

Salandaar and Romanus.

She ignored them.

"Depart and take your foul words with you. I desire to see you never again!"

She drew in a deep breath in preparation....

[ 09-20-2003 11:21 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Graysith ]

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Trust?

Had Phalomir ever trusted anyone? Yes, he had trusted Thoran with his life, and he had been duped. He trusted the Sith clans, and they had betrayed his father. Did he trust anyone now? Did he even trust himself? His own feelings? Feelings which lately had all been focused upon...

her...

But why?

The link they shared, which once was guarded by a beast, now lay open. Was this trust? The strange memories he experienced once in her presence, the memories of events that had not taken place... could he trust in those?

What choice did he have?

He let his body go slack. His face relaxed, and his emerald eyes gave a look of resignation.

"If this is your decision, my lady, I shall trust in it."

He closed his eyes.

--------------------

Of what she did not know.

Inside, the Beast threw back its head, razing its claws within her psyche, rending and tearing and howling. In that wildness it released something it had been zealously guarding, a tiny mote of glittering....

Something.

The Dark Lady remained where she was, utterly ignoring everything about her save for a pair of green eyes which suddenly closed in resignation, yet strangely enough seemed to grow larger and larger and larger, until they dominated the entire universe.

She uttered a little moan, her upraised arm falling limply to her side. Then, the Glyph burst out in incandescent radiance, blinding all to the fact that she was slowly sinking to the base of the throne, that radiance growing dimmer and dimmer in her eyes as she finally came to rest there, unconscious.

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Is this what trust is? he thought.

He stepped through the door. The light surrounded him, warmed him. He continued walking blindly through the light, trusting. The light slowly dissipated and he found himself in a large chamber of sorts. A feeling of extreme warmth surrounded him, and Jharmeen stepped out of the darkness.

Outside, in the grand Hall, Phalomir’s knees buckled and he fell to the floor, unconscious.

[ 09-21-2003 07:52 AM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Phalomir ]

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And from somewhere beyond the Light there came the low cough as if from a very large beast.

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Had she given Graysith her trust, truly?

As those memories continued to play, only one bespoke of anything other than trust, that being the fateful day when her memories had been blocked by the very one she even still believed in, and loved.

For hadn't she returned time and time again, to warn, to assist, to offer everything she had to help Jharmeen JhinDar Qu'taro?

And yet she was being damned for one single act, for the inability to turn on the one other single person in the Universe she truly loved. And Shayla was about to point this very fact out aloud, oblivious to the words being tossed back and forth by Phalomir and Graysith, when the most blinding light blazed forth from the Glyph upon Graysith's forehead. It showered the group in a warm yet harsh golden glow, and Shayla tried to shield her eyes with her arm, falling to her own knees in near-blindness.

In that moment the blinding golden light of the Glyph turned into a vision of sorts; one of a little girl at the Jedi Praxeum who was skipping the daily activities; a little girl whom Shayla knew quite well, for it was herself. Curious, she had wandered off to where the Temple of Exar Kun once stood, trying to get away from the the students and teachers of the Praxeum as well. Letting her long dark blonde hair cascade freely from her head, she raised her eyes to the sun, dreaming to go there and beyond and far away from that Hell which she was living, losing herself in the splendor of the skies. Yet there was something there in that memory which Shayla never quite remembered from that day so long ago until now. For there, in the light of the sun, shown the apparition of a large figure with horns atop its head, all other features indistinct...

...yet, if she looked closely enough...

...it seemed as if that figure was motioning a hand, beckoning her to follow...

[ 09-21-2003 05:12 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Shayla Stargazer Petrolu ]

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Out of the corner of his eye he saw many of the Sith warriors who still had spears running towards the group, while the big captain hurried to the lady. He also managed to catch a glimpse of a large bald human-looking man near the door smiling and leaning on the wall.

He hurried to Phalomir, fell to his knees to check that Phalomir was still breathing, and then looked back to see three Sith warriors headed towards him with spears readied. He jumped again to his feet and prepared to face the warriors. He saw behind the oncoming warriors that some others had already taken Erik to the floor and were busy subduing him, while two others were pointing spears at Shayla and wondering at her blank expression.

Panthar searched for possibilities. He threw his hands up in front of him, palms outward, and paused.

“Um….” he thought.

The Sith warriors drew nearer.

“What’s that, Phalomir?” he called out. “You want me to fry them? All of them? No, only the ones who attack us? Alright, sir, but you remember the last time I tried this and ended up bringing the roof down!”

He closed his eyes and yelled out a mighty roar making large random movements with his hands. He opened one eye to sneak a peek to see if his bluff had done anything.

--------------------

Salandaar's eyes narrowed then, and he snorted. He didn't know what the strange Sith was up to, but it certainly boded no good. Time for action before whatever magickal arts he was calling upon came into play.

He leapt to his feet and was down from the dias in a single bound, landing squarely in front of the gesturing Panthar. For a split moment the smaller Sith's eyes widened in startlement as Salandaar burst into his territorial space; then they rolled back into his head as the hilt of the warrior captain's spear came crashing down upon his head. He wavered on his feet, then crashed to the floor to lie there motionless.

Salandaar whirled then, taking stock of the situation. The challenger Sith was still out; with a nod he indicated that some of his men take him likewise to the dining room. They obeyed, carrying Phalomir off as they had the Dark Lady, albeit not quite as gently. Another nod, and several more hauled the by now fully bound Erik off unceremoniously after the others.

Salandaar whirled to where three warriors now encircled the blank-faced human female, their looks stern and all business, their demeanor the epitome of wariness.

What strangeness this? Did the brilliance of the Lady addle this one's feeble mind?

Salandaar barked out a quick command, and the Sith backed off a fraction. Then he himself strode forward, grasped Shayla roughly by the arm, and hauled her away with him. Her feet scrabbled and scraped against the stone floor, but he paid this little heed.

All he knew was that he was in charge until the Lady's awakening... and every atom within him was screaming that he keep these strangers safely corralled together until plans could be made as to now what to do with them.

Why was the Force leading her to remember something like this now? And just what was it she was remembering anyway?

For it was rather evident to her that the figure shining in the light was a Sith...

...she knew it for the powerful horns atop its head alone. But a Sith, in her childhood? Impossible...

...or was it?

Lady Stargazer, do you not remember your Thoran?

But then the jolt of Erik's cries towards her, both verbally and through the link they yet shared in the Force, finally slammed home and jerked Shayla to the reality of the moment. Shayla's greeny-blue eyes snapped alert.

"Erik!" she cried, trying her damnedest to dig in her heels and stop the Sith from dragging her wherever he might to no avail. Then she continued, this time towards the Sith, "Stop this, for we have done nothing...

...NOTHING!...

...to you or your Dark Lady! I could never bear anyone bringing harm to her..."

Whether the Sith heard Shayla or not, or even heeded her words, yet remained to be seen...

[ 09-22-2003 06:36 AM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Shayla Stargazer Petrolu ]

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“Sometimes power is not enough. There is always something stronger waiting in the clouds, ride the storm together…”

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"My lady--" the higher ranking of them began, but she ignored him. Instead, she rose swiftly to her feet, glancing about hurriedly, as if searching for something.

She found it in the form of the yet unconscious Phalomir, who lay rudely upon the cold floor, ringed by growling warriors.

"Harm him not!" she cried out in spite of herself, now hurrying to his side. Brushing away the astonished guards, she fell to her knees and, placing cool hands upon his face let forth with her talents to bring him back into wakefulness.

"I do not know what has happened," she continued in a near whisper, never moving her eyes from him.

"I only know that I have been directed to... to trust this one...."

She quieted then, shivering as she paused for a single moment of precious reflection, one which struck with the onslaught of a hurricane's tidal surge, more than enough to sweep away whatever personal agenda she may have developed on Dagobah.

Well she knew the larger of the Sith she had seen in the vision sent to her, to him, to them. How could she not recognize that particular set of sweeping horns?

How suddenly she felt that, All strength or no, she was suddenly riding a roller coaster which had no brake, one which hurtled upon a particular, predestined track. She was not the only one with the All, nor the only one with a device to enthrall it....

Forcing this unsettling revelation away for later perusal, she then returned to her ministrations, sending cooling tendrils of herself carefully along the link she had maintained with Phalomir, probing softly but persistently into the curling corridors of his mind, seeking revival, self-awareness, expansion out from the darkness. He was just beginning to shift beneath her touch, a deep groan rumbling out from his broad chest, when sounds of resistance came wafting to her ears.

She slid her eyes to the side in time to see Salandaar hauling Shayla into the room. The young woman was fighting for all she was worth, digging her heels in and clawing at the warrior's muscled arms. To no avail; not only were the Sith a magickal race, they were a strong one.

Various emotions fought a brief and heated battle within her. At length--

"Release her as well, and the other human," she ordered succinctly. The tone of her voice belied the inherent authority in those words, somehow reducing them from a command to a request. Salandaar blinked a bit in surprise at this sudden change, then did as he was told. His hands opened, and the struggling Shayla found herself staggering to her knees.

Off to the side, the warriors ringing the bound Erik backed off as well. Graysith shot a look into Shayla's eyes, and then nodded toward Erik.

"Do not forget the... squire," she said then, now turning back to the stirring Phalomir and once again laying cool hands alongside his face.

[ 09-22-2003 12:16 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Graysith ]

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“Thank you, my lady,” he said softly, sitting up slowly. “I believe we may have much to talk about. I— I am unsure where to begin, except in asking if what I just experienced was real…”

Phalomir’s eyes darted briefly as he realized his surroundings had changed from the great hall. His face showed a sudden look of concern as he refocused on the lady.

“Are you injured?” he asked sincerely.

--------------------

Voices echoed in his ears, and he realized he was lying on a cold stone floor. He tried to stand and ended up stumbling forward into a large Sith warrior. Panthar braced himself for another smack to the head, but the warrior instead helped Panthar to stand.

“That’s right,” he mumbled, pointing at the Sith. “Zap, I’ll getcha. Think I look bad, you shoulda seen the other guy…”

He staggered backwards a few steps, into the arms of another Sith warrior who threw Panthar unceremoniously onto a rug. Panthar mumbled a few unintelligible words, closed his eyes, smiled, and passed out.

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What was this strange turn of events? And what had spurred it on?

For a long moment she sat on her knees in quiet wonder, then she turned her head as Panthar got to his feet in a strange display, then after a few moments fell to the floor unconscious.

"I can help him--" she stated towards one of the powerful Sith warriors even as she got to her feet, starting to take a step out towards him. But she paused in mid-motion upon hearing Phalomir's final query to Graysith, the rest of reality finally slamming home.

That blinding light which had triggered her strange vision. It had come from...

She directed a greeny-blue gaze back to Graysith; one filled with concern and perhaps something else entirely.

"Have you been injured?" she echoed very quietly, something deep within her almost literally screaming to reach out and assist. Unconsciously she then took a step forward, reaching her right hand out slightly. "I can help you..."

...if you will let me, came the final errant thought.

[ 09-22-2003 08:49 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Shayla Stargazer Petrolu ]

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"I am quite unharmed," she said at length, first sitting back on her heels and then rising to her feet even as Phalomir came to his. She stood a moment between the two, letting the vision she had been shown roll around in her mind, struggling not to shy away from what she wished so heartily to shy from; to relieve her inner consternation, she returned her focus fully upon Shayla once more.

"I would think you would wish to see to the needs of your husband," she said smoothly, nodding once again over Shayla's shoulder toward where Erik was now sitting on the floor. The young man was shooting a suspicious glance simply everywhere, rubbing his wrists as he did so.

Another movement: the smaller Sith had fallen unconscious. "Here is one who needs healing abilities as well," she went on, nodding to the snoring Panthar. Her lip crooked just the slightest; then she sobered and turned back to Phalomir.

All haughtiness was evaporated from her demeanor.

"Indeed, there is much we have to discuss, for what we have experienced I believe to be quite real," she agreed with his initial assessment, then fell silent.

From the recesses of the Dining Hall there came a quiet snort... and the shadowy form of Romanus slipped quietly from the room.

--------------------

His liege was quiet for the moment, deep in thought. This allowed Thoran time to reflect as well. He had played his role well these last several weeks, especially after 4500 years of lying dormant inside a crystal. Phalomir had not suspected a thing, and had it not been for the intrusion of the empire then the plans would have succeeded without a hitch.

But that was of no concern now. All was working out regardless. The Eye was in the possession of the liege. To the Warriors Phalomir was seen as a pompous fool and to the Sorcerers he was just the dangerous son of a traitor. Even the Dark Lady despised him. There would be no union, no son. The Eye would fail.

All that was left was to find the Finger. This required a visit to the Armorers, and a possible encounter with the empire. Thoran preferred a more direct approach, but this simple shuttle was not capable of blasting such large ships as the empire’s from existence. However, his liege had grander plans and would reveal them shortly…

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"Shayla I don't--" he started.

But she placed a finger to his lips, returning look for look. "Trust me," she said simply.

"You I trust," he commented, adding no more than that and not really needing to do so. Shayla understood very well what he was saying.

Casting something of a warning look in his direction in reply, Shayla then helped him haul himself to his feet.

"Anything else hurt?" she queried, looking him over.

"Nothing which demands immediate attention," he replied, sighing as he looked towards the unconscious Panthar. "Him however..."

Shayla followed Erik's brown eyes to that point where the smaller Sith...

...aka Panthar...

...had crumpled to the floor. Then she crossed the floor to where he yet lay, knowing her husband was probably somewhere close behind as she once more knelt, laid a hand upon the unconscious man's brow, and closed her eyes as she reached into through the Force to channel healing energies to him...

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“I fear that my mind holds many secrets, even from me. I do not know extent of my power, but if it were able to unlock these secrets then it would have already.”

He sighed quietly.

“Would you use the All Force to help me?”

--------------------

Panthar’s eyes snapped open to see Shayla’s arm reaching over him. Her hand was on his forehead and warm sensations flow through his body.

“Um… thanks?” he said, smiling.

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The last time she had come close to using her powers near him, that thing, the Eye, had blasted her, knocking her unconscious....

Yet it was all about trust, was it not?

She closed her eyes, suddenly very, very tired of it all. Opened them and stared steadily into the green pair before her.

"Yes," she whispered then, reaching a slim hand for the neural focal points on his face.

"Even if it should be the last thing I do...."

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“It is about trust, my lady, and I open myself to you. The Eye is no longer within me, but I have its power. A power which I can now control, unlike the other times we have met. I never wanted anything to hurt you.”

He smiled once more and closed his eyes.

--------------------

Then, the ghostly remnants of that smile still affixed to her face, she let herself grow deeper into herself, into his own mind, there seeking the answers he claimed to have hidden so far away from his own awareness. Answers, perhaps, to questions she herself harbored without knowing....

And from somewhere very, very far away there came the mournful howl of the Beast.

--------------------

Each window allowed her to peer into memories of recent events, but growing less recent as she progressed down the hallway. Finally, after what seemed like hours, she came to a closed door at the end of the hall. It was locked, but with great effort she reached out with her powers and the door opened. It gave way to a larger hallway, this one much darker.

The first window showed a Sith face in a mirror, Phalomir. He was dressed in a formal robe, being attended to by many ladies as they prepared him for an apparently very special occasion. Soon he was being led down a corridor, reminiscent of the Sorcerer’s temple, but lined with art and devices unknown to the Chosen Daughter. He was met in a grand hall by hundreds of onlookers, and Jharmeen’s eyes widened as she witnessed the coronation of the new Dark Lord, the youngest in quite some time.

She stumbled backwards and her attention was captured by another window. A war raged, the Sith were fighting fiercely in ships of designs she had not yet seen against a foe she could not identify, and they were losing. She realized this was a battle for K’eel Doba, and the battle was being witnessed through a very familiar crystal device. Two Sith stood with Phalomir around the Crystal Octahedron, all dressed in the garb of a Dark Lord, though she did not recognize the other two. They all joined hands for a moment, and one of the two others cut a portal out of the air. “The All was responsible, the All shall save us,” said the other. "You make this sacrifice for us all." Phalomir smiled, stepped through and vanished.

The next window was clouded over, the images inside were too distorted to see. However, she could make out Phalomir again, still dressed in the Dark Lord robes, speaking with another Sith. The other was too distorted to see, but something was very familiar about the shape of the body, the size, the bend of the horns…. Roan!

The window grew a dark red, and the light in the hallway dimmed. From the far end of the hall came a low, guttural growl.

[ 09-22-2003 11:15 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Phalomir ]

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